Artemis and the Great Hunt
by fhrulz21
Summary: First in a series of One Shots. Werewolves have their own culture and oral traditions. Derek, Laura and Cora learn their history and rites of passage from their Alpha (aka Mom). Quick snippets of life growing up as a young Hale with lots of new mythologies tossed in.
1. Artemis and the Great Hunt

_Disclaimer: I do not own any Teen Wolf characters. They belong only to Jeff Davis and MTV. I do happily claim any new characters that I invent._

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Talia listened to her three children argue over the shower. Derek complained that Laura took too long and that Cora left water all over the floor. Laura argued that since she was the oldest and future Alpha that it was _obvious_ that she should go first. Cora was upset that whenever she got to use the shower, the water was cold because both of her siblings were focused on _dating_, which she always delivered with a disgusted scrunch of her nose and overly exaggerated gagging noises.

Before long, Laura managed to wrangle the first shower, as usual. Derek huffed and stomped back to his room. Cora sat down in front of the door, determined not to lose her chance at the second shower and still warm water.

Talia smiled fondly at the ceiling. Morning showers were never as hectic as evening showers. Cora caught the later bus since she was still in elementary school, while Derek and Laura were both in Middle School. The Alpha laid her head back on the sofa cushion and listened as the water shut off and small feet pounded a few steps before slamming the door. Her son squawked in indignation at being the last to shower – again. Talia shook her head. Her son would make an excellent beta one day, but he would never be Alpha material; her daughters had that position all sewn up.

When she finally heard Derek get out of the shower, grumbling about puddles of water all over the floor, she got up from the couch and shouted up the stairs, "Alright, pajamas on and meet in Cora's room."

Derek and Laura protested in unison, insisting they were too old for _bedtime stories_. But, they knew it was pointless and trudged into the pink and purple room, perfect for wolves that liked to pretend be fairies.

By the time Talia entered her daughter's room, Laura was already settled on the floor and Derek sat on the bed with his baby sister in his lap. The Alpha pulled the rocking chair from the corner of the room over to the side of the bed before beginning.

"I know you remember how Lycaon tricked Zeus and he cursed all of his sons and turned them into wolves. We will follow that story with Artemis and her actions afterwards."

The trio settled in. Laura leaned back against the bed, eyes unfocused. Cora snuggled into her older brother's chest, who just hugged her tighter.

"Artemis, goddess of the moon and hunt, favored the newly made wolves. While the wolves begged the Druids to help them turn back, Artemis worked on a way to keep them animals. Her own hunting pack was fast and quick, but they lacked intelligence.

"The Druids suppressed the wolf with wolfsbane to allow the cursed to return to their human forms. But it took so much to hold back the power of Zeus that the werewolves became extremely sensitive to the plant. It was already poisonous to humans, but it was now extremely deadly to the werewolves.

"A devout worshiper of Zeus, named Argenteus was angry that they had escaped their punishment. He set out to trap their leader and force him back into his wolf form permanently. Artemis saw his plan and decided to manipulate Argenteus into fulfilling her wishes. She told him of what the Druids had done and that the plant was responsible for their shifting.

"Argenteus lured the first Alpha into a clearing, promising him a way to earn back Zeus's favor. As they walked further and further into the clearing, the Alpha stumbled and fell to the ground. Under the cover of leaves was a giant spiral made of wolfsbane. The wolf struggled to breathe and begged Argenteus to help him. The man now known as the first Hunter sneered at the dying wolf and left him amongst the poisonous flowers.

"Artemis was distraught. Her plan had failed and left the handsome Alpha moments from death. Leaning over the body of the first Alpha, she kissed him on the lips, stealing his last human breath. On her exhale, his body shifted to that of a true wolf."

Talia looked over the faces of her children. "Why do we bury pack under a spiral of wolfsbane?"

Cora wiggled in Derek's lap. "So that we can be with Artemis and see all of the wolves that aren't here anymore."

The Alpha poked her youngest on the nose. "That's right."

Cora squeaked and giggled at her mom's approval.

In her peripheral vision, Talia caught Laura rolling her eyes in typical teenaged apathy.

"Instead of going to the Underworld like the rest of humanity, the Alpha's spirit went with Artemis. There, he awaited the rest of his pack, who all joined him in wolf form. The Alphas that followed all joined Artemis in the Hunt and relished every moment of being with their packs for eternity. However, the first Alpha did not join in the revelry. He stayed by Artemis's side, her eternal companion. He wasn't just an Alpha; he was the first True Alpha."

Talia glanced over at her eldest. "And what is the difference between a True Alpha and the type of Alpha you will be?"

Laura examined her fingernails, cheeks turning pink. "I'll inherit it. A True Alpha is blessed by Artemis herself for their strength of character, determination and force of will."

Their mother nodded, glad to have gotten through to her proud daughter. "That's all for tonight. Off to bed."

Laura quickly vacated the room and shut her door quietly. Talia's son lifted his younger sister from his lap and laid her on her pillows. His green eyes softened and he gave her a kiss on the forehead. The moment he realized his mother had witnessed his affection, he huffed and folded his arms across his chest. Talia gave him a small smile and grazed his forehead with her lips in return.

Cora snuggled under her blankets once Derek left, rapidly starting to doze off. Talia covered her the rest of the way with the sparkly comforter and smoothed the wrinkles from the bedspread.

"I always liked the story of the ninth True Alpha, personally."

Talia swept her dark hair behind her shoulder and gave her youngest brother a disapproving glare. "You would."

Peter shrugged his shoulders. He had given up expecting any one to understand his sense of humor and fine appreciation of irony.

"You know, you are more than welcome to share stories with the pups, as well."

"I'm not a big fan of babysitting."

Talia's eyes crinkled in humor. "No, the big bad _Junior_ in _High_ _School_ is far more fond of boys with blonde hair and blue eyes."

Peter spluttered. "That's not … I mean -"

His sister patted him on the shoulder as she left Cora's room. "You can tell them all about it tomorrow night. Eric and I are having date night."


	2. The Wolf and the Fairy Princess

_Disclaimer: All characters from Teen Wolf are the property of Jeff Davis and MTV.  
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_A/N: Unbeta-ed for now . . . because I have no patience.  
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**The Wolf and the Fairy Princess**

Peter was horrified. His sister _actually_ intended to leave him with babysitting duty. She even gave him strict instructions to tell her three children a _story_. The injustice of it all made his stomach twist into knots. Glaring with all of his might at Talia, he argued, "Laura is in Eighth Grade. She is more than capable of making sure the other two don't kill themselves."

Talia said nothing, just smirked at him.

Huffing in frustration, he crossed his arms over his chest. "And what if I have plans?"

Talia's smirk grew. "Oh? And what plans would those be?"

Peter's lips twisted. While he did have plans, he couldn't actually confess to them. She already knew he had a thing for a boy with blonde hair and blue eyes. While that was all well and good, she wouldn't be so content to leave it alone if she knew the boy was Chris Argent. Boys were fine; hunters were not. "That's not the point."

"I do believe it is the point."

Seeing his argument going nowhere, Peter resigned himself to calling Chris after Talia and her husband left. With some luck, he may have a chance to sneak out later. Clenching his hands around his biceps, he gritted out, "Fine. I'll watch them and make sure there's a house still standing."

"Thank you, Peter."

He grunted and turned to go back up the stairs, grumbling about the unfairness of having a sister so much older.

Talia huffed, trying to stop herself from laughing. Small hands gripped her shirt. The alpha looked down at her youngest daughter who had decided to accessorize with a tiara and purple fairy wings. Getting a wicked idea, Talia bent down to speak with her daughter. She leaned in and whispered quietly into Cora's ear. "Sweetie, why don't you ask Peter to share the story of the Wolf and the Fairy Princess with you?"

Cora's eyes lit up. She started bouncing in place, still holding on to her mother's shirt. "Can I?!"

Talia nodded.

"Yay!" Cora zoomed off and began hopping around the living room.

Talia's husband wrapped his arm around her waist. "You are completely evil."

The alpha hummed in agreement. "Let's get out of here."

The pair turned and left Peter with their three children. In all honesty, they were more worried about Peter surviving.

Ten minutes after Talia and Eric had left for date night, Derek and Laura tumbled down the stairs. Peter was right on their heels. "Where do you think you are going?"

"Out," Derek stated.

Peter crossed his arms the moment he reached the bottom of the stairs. "Oh no, you're not. I'm supposed to be watching the three of you tonight."

Laura snorted. "Have fun with Cora, Peter. We're going to be late to the 7:30 showing of The Faculty."

"Really? You're sneaking out to watch that? What about The Big Lebowski?"

Laura rolled her eyes. "Seriously? You have the weirdest sense of humor."

Peter just stood there, watching as they hopped on their bikes and sped off to the movies. Huffing, he turned his head and saw Cora bouncing on the sofa cushions. He supposed he should stop her; but, if she fell, she would just heal.

Cora ran over to her uncle, her tiara askew and hair wisps sticking out to the sides. One wing was higher than the other and the silver tinsel around the edges was starting to fray and fall off. "Momma said you were going to tell me a story."

Peter barely held back a sneer. At least he got to choose the story. He was hoping to have a larger audience for the story of the ninth True Alpha, but beggars can't be choosers. "Yes, after dinner I'll tell you the story of -"

"NO! I wanna hear the story of the Wolf and the Fairy Princess, now!"

"The … what?!"

"The Wolf and the Fairy Princess! Momma said you knew it."

Peter was going to kill his sister. Of course, she would derail his plans in the most embarrassing way possible. He had no intention of _ever_ speaking or acknowledging that catastrophe again. "That's not really a part of the histories that you are supposed to be learning."

"But Momma said you would tell it to me!" Cora was getting progressively more upset. She stomped her right foot, making her tiara tip even more precariously to one side.

"And Talia isn't here."

"You can't do that. She's your alpha and you have to do what she says," Cora stated with all the certainty of a five year old.

Peter struggled to reason with his determined niece. "It's not a history -"

"It's a fairytale?" Cora asked with excitement.

"No. It's too recent to be considered history and not important enough to be told . . . or remembered."

"Do you know who it's about?!" Cora's face lit up in glee at the idea of a real life fairytale.

"You could say that." Peter had no intention of claiming the story for himself. His eyebrow raised and a smirk danced across his lips. He could however lay it on someone else's shoulders and he always delighted in embarrassing his older brother. "You know him too," he lilted.

"I do?"

"You do. It's my brother, your Uncle Ralph." Peter looked around the living room. If he was going to do this, he was going to do this right. Calmly, he strode over to the couch and settled in. Cora sat cross-legged on the rug in front of him.

Peter cleared his throat and straightened his shoulders. "It all started on a beautiful summer day. All the leaves were green and the sky was a deep cerulean blue."

"What's ce – ceru – cerulean?"

Peter sniffed indignantly. "Pay attention or I won't tell you the story."

Cora's bottom lip trembled.

"It's a type of blue. I'm sure it's in your crayon box. Now, hush." Peter took an exaggerated breath and began again. "Your Uncle Ralph decided that it was too nice of a day to waste indoors and decided to go exploring. He ran and tumbled through the Preserve without thinking about where he was going or how long he had been gone. After a while, he crossed into the deeper forests to the north."

Cora gasped and covered her mouth with tiny hands. "We aren't supposed to go there."

Peter nodded. "Quite right. And Ralph found out the hard way. The forest there is older, the trees more ancient. Everything felt different, like the very air could speak. He traveled on a little ways more, but soon had to stop because thick fog started rolling in. He tried to turn back, but he wasn't able to figure out which direction he was going. He was quickly lost. Getting more and more panicked, he howled for the pack, hoping to hear them and guide his way home. But, there was something strange about this forest. The pack couldn't hear him and he couldn't hear them calling for him."

Cora's eyes grew wide. She leaned forward, completely enthralled.

"A ringing bell-like sound echoed around him. The mist parted and revealed a beautiful woman with hair that looked like spun glass. She laughed the more Ralph panicked. 'Hush now, little wolf. You seem to be quite far from home,' she said. Her voice was musical and soft. It captured his attention and enchanted him. The more she spoke, the more he wanted to stay with her and never leave her side.

"Slowly, she drew him further and further into the fog and farther from the pack. 'You would like to stay with me, wouldn't you?'

"Ralph nodded, completely enchanted by the beautiful woman.

"'What would you do to be able to live here with me?'

"'Anything,' he replied.

"Her eyes gleamed with power. They looked like stars taken straight from the night sky on a new moon. Before he could say anything more, she waved her hand and he felt himself shrinking further and further until he was surrounded by his clothes in a puddle around him. He tried to protest, but found that all that came out was a high-pitched bark. She had turned him into a wolf pup."

"A real wolf? Like Momma?" Cora asked, breathless in awe.

Peter nodded. "Exactly."

"Wow. What happened? Did Momma find him?"

He looked at his niece, staring directly into her eyes. Peter let the silence settle and draw out, causing Cora to shift from side to side. When her anxiety started to peak he started in, voice velvety and smooth. "It took three days for the pack to locate him. The fairy had drawn Ralph completely under her spell and he did not answer, even when the fog had lifted and the howls clearly traveled through the forest. The pack worked together and found him by scent. Because he was a full wolf, his pack scent was stronger than it normally would have been. When Talia and the rest found the fairy and Ralph, they demanded him back.

"But the fairy had the upper hand. 'The treaty made between our peoples clearly states that any that wander onto our lands belong to us. As I am the princess and will succeed my mother; that means that he belongs to me.'

"Talia protested. She argued that he was young and did not know about the treaty. But, the fairy princess would not be swayed. She demanded a favor in return for returning the pup to his pack. She did not specify what the favor would be and refused to allow constraints on the rule. The pack left with the pup, in debt for an undetermined amount of time with an undetermined price. But, there is no real price that can be put on the value of pack."

"What did they have to do?"

Peter shook his head. "The debt hasn't been called in yet. At some point, it will be called in. Fairies never forget a debt."

Cora's jaw dropped. "We still owe the fairies?"

"We do."

Staring intently at her uncle, she asked, "Did the fairy turn him back before they left?"

Peter fought down a blush. "No. He remained a wolf pup until the next full moon. Nothing the pack did could force a shift. Even Talia roaring did nothing. He remained a pup for three whole weeks. Talia felt so bad for him for being stuck as a puppy for so long, that she didn't punish him further."

Cora sat still, silently contemplating the story. Peter was rather proud of himself. He avoided implicating himself and successfully wove the tale to his hyperactive niece. The girl stood up and patted her skirt down. With a serious expression, she solemnly stated, "You can be the wolf."

"What?" Peter startled. He had no idea how she had seen through his subterfuge. She was only five and had no idea how to detect deception.

Cora scrunched her eyebrows and pursed her lips. "You want to play the fairy princess instead?"

Peter nearly sighed in relief. Then his brain caught up with what his niece was asking. "No. I am not playing a fairy princess."

"So, you'll be the wolf?"

"No! I'm not playing anything. I am going to make you dinner and you are going to eat it, get cleaned up and go to bed. In that order."

Cora crossed her arms over her chest and glared with all her might at her uncle. "Don't be a meanie."

Throwing his hands in the air, Peter gave in. "Fine. I'll be the fairy princess." He utterly refused to be the wolf in this . . . again.

Before he could blink, Cora ripped her tiara off of her head and settled it on top of Peter's. "Do you want the wings too?"

Voice slightly pinched, Peter stated, "No, she didn't have wings."

"Okay," Cora chirped. She flung her wings across the room and shifted as far as she could, eyes glowing gold and small fangs appearing.

An hour later, the front door opened. Talia and Eric decided to come back early and rescue Peter. They were certain that they would find four miserable werewolves sulking in their bedrooms. Instead, they felt like they had fallen into an alternate universe. Staying as silent as they could, they watched the scene unfold.

Peter was standing on the coffee table, tiara prominently displayed and waving a stick. Cora was running in circles on all fours barking and partially shifted.

"You're supposed to be a pup, not a Tasmanian devil."

"But, Uncle Peter . . ."

"Ah, ah! That's Your Highness to you."

Cora giggled. "Yes, Your Highness."

"Much better. Now, let's see if you can act like a proper wolf pup."

Talia couldn't stand it any longer. She held her stomach as she burst out into hysterical laughter. Eric wasn't any help in calming her down. He joined in the laughter, holding on to his wife to prevent from losing his balance.

Peter slowly turned to face his sister and brother-in-law. Horrified that he had been caught, he slid the stick portraying a wand behind his back. He refused to stand there and allow them the upper hand. "Well, it looks like your parents are back. Maybe they will tell you the story of how they discovered they were going to have Derek." With that sharp remark, Peter exited up the stairs and closed the door to his room. It was still relatively early. Hopefully, he could arrange a late night meeting with Chris and salvage what little remained of his dignity.

Cora beamed at her parents. "What happened when you found out about Derek?"

Her parents cringed. "Maybe some other time, Sweetie. Let's get you dinner and you can tell us all about the evening."

"Okay!" Cora bounded into the kitchen, ready for dinner. But, she never forgot the promise of a good story. Just like fairies never forget a debt.


End file.
